A not-so-tactful local politician in Oregon was caught on camera disparaging fellow attendees during a livestreamed meeting Tuesday morning.
Embattled Washington County Commissioner Kathryn Harrington flipped her candidate for chair, Commissioner Nafisa Fai, after a brief but tense exchange in which she supposedly blocked the commissioner’s view. The Oregonian reported.
The heated exchange unfolded after Mr. Harrington abruptly interrupted the meeting and asked Mr. Fay to “stop obstructing the view” of Commissioner Jason Snyder.
Livestream footage showed Ms. Fay adjusting her chair twice, while Ms. Harrington apparently pushed her chair back, slammed her hand on the table and gave Mr. Fay the finger while other directors looked away.
Snyder continued to answer questions about Harrington’s housing, but then Faye interrupted the meeting to ask if anyone had seen Harrington’s sly middle finger.
“Can you stop for a second? Did you see my finger?” Fai said.
“Did anyone see that?” asked the stunned chairman.
When none of the board members responded, Mr. Fay directed the meeting to continue.
Snyder then quipped, “Maybe you can help if you move.”
Commissioner Pam Treece, who was present at Tuesday morning’s public meeting, called on Harrington to apologize to both Fay and county residents for her actions.
In a statement, Treece said she was “shocked and disappointed” after reviewing the livestream, which was made public. K.G.W..
“As leaders, we must hold ourselves to higher standards for what we say and do, and when we fall short, we must admit, take responsibility and do better in the future,” Treece continued.
“I will work with my fellow commissioners to determine what further action is needed,” Trees said, adding that he intends to return recent donations made by Harrington to his campaign and remove the chair’s endorsement from his website.
“Secretary Fay and I are opponents in the Washington County mayor’s race and we don’t always see eye to eye, but we strongly believe that our differences should never prevent us from treating each other with respect,” Treece said.
“Sadly, here in Washington County, as we see in Portland and across the nation, there is a growing intolerance of different opinions and different approaches to problem-solving,” Trees said.
“This is alarming for all of us,” she said bitterly.
Harrington apologized Tuesday afternoon, calling his actions “unprofessional.”
“I formally and personally apologize to Chair Nafisa Fai, my other district board colleagues, Washington County staff and the community for my unprofessional response to Chair Fai during this morning’s work session,” she said in a statement.
“My reaction was clearly not appropriate in any case. I should never have behaved in such a harmful manner.”
Tuesday’s incident is not the first time Harrington has been in hot water over allegations of problematic behavior.
Two former employees told The Oregonian that she continued to misbehave even after a 2022 investigation into her treatment of county employees found her conduct to be abusive.
Most recently, in March, there were reports that the company’s chairman had verbally abused an employee, leaving the employee in tears.
At the time, Mr. Harrington issued a public apology and indicated he was stepping down from his important role as chairman.